THE TALE OF SILYAN

Silyan is a mythical character from a 17th century Macedonian folktale about a young boy who is born into a rural farming family. He desperately wants to escape the strenuous work on his family’s farmland, but his father is displeased with Silyan’s rebellion. He casts a spell on Silyan, turning him into a stork, forever condemned to migrate between continents, never able to settle or have land of his own.

THE TALE OF SILYAN is inspired by this legend. Silyan lives in perfect symbiosis with the farmers of the Macedonian countryside. Life is good until local families are unable to sell their crops due to new government policies. Most farmers are forced to sell their land for cheap prices and emigrate. One of these farmers is Nikola, whose family abandons him in order to look for a better future abroad. Unable to sell his land and join his family, Nikola is forced to get a state job as a landfill attendant.

This is where Nikola meets Silyan, who was drawn to the landfill as a new food source, and whose family left him behind due to a broken wing. Nikola saves the injured bird and by learning to understand each other, they begin to find the affection and belonging that both seek in the absence of their kin. Ultimately, Silyan has such an effect on Nikola that he decides to quit his landfill job and return to his farmland to slowly bring the flock of storks back to the fertile soil. Nikola’s renewed empathy and spirit attracts his wife Jana to return home to again work by his side.

Throughout the film, this narrative is interwoven with the thread of the folktale, keeping the audience in the space between reality and magical realism.

Macedonian with English Subtitles